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Hamilton to Receive Honorary Degree from Albany Law

Albany Law School will confer an honorary degree on Alexander Hamilton in recognition of his influence in the Albany area. The degree will be conferred as part of the law school’s 167th Commencement ceremony on May 17, 2018. The award will be accepted by Douglas Hamilton, Alexander’s fifth great-grandson.

Alexander Hamilton was an immigrant, the nation’s first Secretary of the Treasury, author of a large portion of the Federalist Papers, and a Colonel to George Washington in the Revolutionary War.

Hamilton traveled to Albany for the first time in 1777 on behalf of George Washington to meet with General Horatio Gates, to convince Gates to provide Washington with reinforcements.

In 1780, Hamilton married Elizabeth Schuyler at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany where Aaron Burr was one of the invited guests. Elizabeth was the daughter of the prominent Albany family patriarch Philip Schuyler, a Revolutionary War general, and Catherine Van Rensselaer Schuyler.

Hamilton spent considerable time in Albany, staying often with his in-laws when legal work brought him to the state’s high courts. Both Hamilton and Aaron Burr studied law and were admitted to the bar by 1783. They both opened law offices in New York City. Because New York’s Capitol, the highest court—the Supreme Court of Judicature (later the Court of Appeals)—and the state legislature were all in Albany, Hamilton and Burr were frequently in the area. Burr kept an office at 24 South Pearl Street, while Hamilton often stayed with his in-laws the Schuylers.

Continuous conflicts between Burr and Hamilton eventually led to Burr challenging Hamilton to a duel in 1804. It was the Albany Register that published a letter with disparaging remarks allegedly made by Hamilton about Burr that brought the conflict to a head.

Reportedly Hamilton shot in the air, but Burr aimed and hit his target. Hamilton died the following day at age 47.